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Scientific Papers in SCI



2023


Materiales de Diseño para la Energía y Medioambiente

Sustainable Integration of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles: Enhancing Properties of Poly(ε-Caprolactone) Electrospun Nanofibers and Cast Films

Abdullah, JAA; Benítez, JJ; Guerrero, A; Romero, A
Coatings, 13 (2023) 1665

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This study investigated the impact of adding zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) to electrospun membranes and cast films made of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) (PCL). The physicochemical, mechanical, and morphological properties of the samples were analyzed. Physicochemical parameters included water contact angle (WCA), water vapor transmission rate (WVTR), permeance, water vapor permeability (WVP), light transmission (T-600), and transparency (T). Mechanical properties, such as maximum stress (6(max)), elongation (epsilon(max)), and Young's modulus (MPa), were also evaluated. Morphological properties were analyzed in terms of thickness, dispersion, and surface roughness (measured by the arithmetic (Ra) and quadratic (Rq) averages). The crystallinity and melting point, as well as the functional DPPH center dot scavenging percentage (SP%), were also studied. The results showed that adding 1 wt% ZnO-NPs improved the water barrier properties of PCL membranes and films, increasing WCA by 1%-6% and decreasing WVTR by 11%-19%, permeance by 34%-20%, and WVP by 4%-11%, respectively. The T-600 values of PCL/ZnO-NPs membranes and films were 2-3 times lower than those of neat PCL samples, indicating improved optical properties. The mechanical properties of the composite membranes and films also improved, with 6(max) increasing by 56%-32% and Young's modulus increasing by 91%-95%, while epsilon(max) decreased by 79%-57%. The incorporation of ZnO-NPs also increased the thickness and surface roughness of the samples. The SP% of PCL/ZnO-NPs increased by almost 69%, demonstrating the beneficial effects of ZnO-NPs on the system. These findings suggest that incorporating ZnO-NPs into PCL membranes and films can enhance their properties, making them well suited for various applications, such as those within the realm of materials science and nanotechnology.


October, 2023 | DOI: 10.3390/coatings13101665

Fotocatálisis Heterogénea: Aplicaciones - Nanotecnología en Superficies y Plasma

Mechanistic aspects of the reduction of rutile titanium dioxide and its Re-oxidation. Development and destruction of crystallographic shear structures

Bickley, RI; Garside, GR; González-Carreño, T; González-Elipe, AR; Navío, JA
Journal of Solid State Chemistry, 326 (2023) 124174

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A model is presented giving the mean dimensions of acicular octadecahedral microcrystallites of a rutile titanium dioxide powder. Reduction at 823 K, in conjunction with ESR, electrical conductivity and controlled re-oxidation has enabled the model to be applied to reduced microcrystallites. At 300 K they contain <0.1% of paramagnetic [Ti3+↑ VO: Ti3+] reduced edge sites and >99.9% of reduced spin-paired [Ti3+↑↓ Ti3+ VO:] sites. These sites are situated on the external crystal faces and on polygonal bulk crystallographic shear (CS) structures inclined to the microcrystal four-fold symmetry axis. CS structures are quantum-sized [Ti4O7VO:] environments which broaden the paramagnetic signals at 78 K. Temperature programmed reduction in H2(g) reveals atomic hydrogen as a precursor to CS structure formation via a lattice template formed on microcrystallite faces. Shear structures are oxidised on their polygonal perimeters at differing rates on the respective microcrystallite faces by anionic vacancy transfer from sub-surface regions.


October, 2023 | DOI: 10.1016/j.jssc.2023.124174

Reactividad de Sólidos

Metal- based eggshell particles prepared via successive incipient wetness impregnation method as a promoted sorbent for CO2 capturing in the calcium looping process

Imani, M; Tahmasebpoor, M; Sanchez-Jimenez, PE
Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, 11 (2023) 110584

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Cyclic adsorption by using of bio-waste eggshell particles as a cheap, accessible and environmentally friendly CaCO3 source has been considered as one of the important methods to decrease or remove CO2 from the flue gas. However, deactivation of eggshell particles and CO2 capture capacity decaying with increasing the cycle's number remained as an important challenge. Using metal nitrates as one of the modification methods has been proposed by the researchers to overcome this problem. Current study investigates the influence of three metal nitrates of Al, La and Mg added to the eggshell particles via successive incipient wetness impregnation (SIWI) method to improve their adsorption performance. The TGA results at the end of the 20th carbonation/calcination cycle revealed a meaningful relationship between CaO molar conversion of eggshell modified with metal nitrates and their crystallite size as well as the surface area of the sorbents, so that the smaller the crystal size and the larger the surface area, the higher the molar conversion of CaO could be achieved. Due to the highest conversion obtained for Mg-containing sample, the effect of different weight percentages of this additive was also investigated. Results showed that 5 wt% MgO contained eggshell particles could be reported as the most outstanding sample for its improved molar conversion, capture capacity at the end of 20th carbonation/calcination cycle and BET surface area, which were 30.18%, 0.23 gr CO2/gr adsorbent and 3.5 m2/g while the corresponding amounts for raw eggshell were 17.26%, 0.11 gr CO2/gr adsorbent and 1.63 m2/g, respectively.


October, 2023 | DOI: 10.1016/j.jece.2023.110584

Materiales de Diseño para la Energía y Medioambiente

Biodegradability Assessment of Prickly Pear Waste-Polymer Fibers under Soil Composting

Correa-Pacheco, ZN; Bautista-Baños, S; Benítez-Jiménez, JJ; Ortega-Gudiño, P; Cisneros-López, EO; Hernández-López, M
Polymers, 15 (2023) 4164

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Nowadays, solving the problems associated with environmental pollution is of special interest. Therefore, in this work, the morphology and thermal and mechanical properties of extruded fibers based on polylactic acid (PLA) and poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) added to prickly pear flour (PPF) under composting for 3 and 6 months were evaluated. The highest weight loss percentage (92 +/- 7%) was obtained after 6-month degradation of the PLA/PBAT/PPF/CO/AA blend, in which PPF, canola oil (CO), and adipic acid (AA) were added. Optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed structural changes in the fibers as composting time increased. The main changes in the absorption bands observed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were related to the decrease in -C=O (1740 cm-1) and -C-O (1100 cm-1) groups and at 1269 cm-1, associated with hemicellulose in the blends with PPF. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showed an increase in the cold crystallization and melting point with degradation time, being more evident in the fibers with PPF, as well as a decrease in the mechanical properties, especially Young's modulus. The obtained results suggest that PPF residues could promote the biodegradability of PLA/PBAT-based fiber composites.


October, 2023 | DOI: 10.3390/polym15204164

Química de Superficies y Catálisis

Impact of topology framework of microporous solids on methanol carbonylation: An operando DRIFTS-MS study

Luque-Alvarez, LA; Serrano-Cruz, M; Gonzalez-Castano, M; Bobadilla, LF; Odriozola, JA
Microporous and mesoporous materials, 360 (2023) 112725

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Methanol carbonylation was evaluated over heterogeneous catalysts based on Cu-exchanged zeolitic materials with different topology: Cu@MOR, Cu@FER, and Cu@ZSM-5. Despite the similar Si/Al ratios, it is crucial to acknowledge that the acid strength is influenced by the framework topology, as supported by the NH3-TPD results. This, along with other characterization techniques allowed us to estimate the impact of pore size and pore distribution in these microporous materials on catalytic performance. The channel structure influenced catalytic parameters such as conversion and selectivity. The higher methanol conversion achieved on Cu@FER shows the importance of Bronsted acid sites and redox centres location regarding the topology of the material. Concerning the selectivity, the production of acetic acid was endorsed by the 12-MR (MOR) channels, methyl acetate's production by the 10-MR (FER) channels. Finally, the presence of 6-MR (ZSM-5) channels led to a complete selectivity towards DME production. The reaction mechanism was elucidated via operando DRIFTS-MS and results revealed a bifunctional mechanism in which methanol adsorbs and dehydrates on acidic Bronsted sites and CO is activated over Cu+ species.


October, 2023 | DOI: 10.1016/j.micromeso.2023.112725

 

 

 

 

 

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